DIRECT CHEMISTRY SPRAY APPLICATION IN WAREWASH

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

[0001]This application claims priority to U.S. Application No. 63/740,614, filed Dec. 31, 2024, which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety.

TECHNICAL FIELD

[0002]The disclosure relates generally to method of cleaning an article in a dishmachine employing a direct application of cleaning or rinsing composition to an article in a dishmachine for enhanced cleaning performance with a reduction in total concentration of the composition compared to conventional dishmachine usage applying the cleaning or rinsing composition from the sump of the dishmachine.

BACKGROUND

[0003]There remains an interest in continual improvement for water and energy savings in the warewash space, including both customer and institutional dishwashing. Methods and cleaning compositions for optimized soil removal remain a priority for customers and institutions. These priorities for continued improvement in the methods of dishwashing can benefit from reductions in water, chemistry and energy usage and consumption. Moreover, labor savings that result from these improvements are further desired while maintaining or enhancing cleaning performance.

[0004]It is therefore an object of this disclosure to provide methods of dishwashing that provide efficacious and complete removal of soils with various cleaning compositions, including cost conscious detergent compositions, through use of improved methods of cleaning to enhance performance beyond the same removal with traditional application methods.

[0005]It is a further object of the disclosure to provide methods of dishwashing employing direct chemistry, including cleaning or rinsing compositions, applications.

[0006]It is another object of this disclosure to provide methods of dishwashing employing direct chemistry applications that reduce both cleaning cycle time and water consumption.

[0007]It is a further object of this disclosure to provide such improvements with dishwashing methods that are independent of temperature, water hardness, and wash time.

[0008]It is a further object of the present disclosure to provide a direct spray chemical application system and other advanced features for machine warewashing applications.

[0009]Other objects, embodiments and advantages of this disclosure will be apparent to one skilled in the art in view of the following disclosure, the drawings, and the appended claims.

SUMMARY

[0010]The following objects, features, advantages, aspects, and/or embodiments, are not exhaustive and do not limit the overall disclosure. No single embodiment need provide each and every object, feature, or advantage. Any of the objects, features, advantages, aspects, and/or embodiments disclosed herein can be integrated with one another, either in full or in part.

[0011]It is a primary object of the present disclosure to improve on or overcome the deficiencies in the art in methods of dishwashing that utilize water, chemistry energy, and labor at conventional levels.

[0012]According to some aspects of the present disclosure, methods of cleaning an article in a dishmachine comprise: rinsing the article in the dishmachine with water from a sump; applying a cleaning or rinsing composition directly to the article in the dishmachine with a contact time of about 1 second to about 15 seconds, wherein the direct application does not dilute the cleaning or rinsing composition in the sump of the dishmachine before contacting the article; and washing the article in the dishmachine with water from the sump; wherein the cleaning or rinsing composition is dosed at a total concentration less than a cleaning or rinsing composition applied as diluted chemistry from the sump of the dishmachine with improved cleaning or rinsing efficacy to methods employing the greater concentration of the diluted composition.

[0013]According to some other aspects of the present disclosure, the system for direct application of concentrated warewash chemistries to dishware in a commercial dishmachine can be applied by via a fine mist produced by delivery pumps and atomizing or fogging nozzles. To create the fine mist, the system is further designed to pump multiple concentrated warewash chemistries through said fogging nozzles that can coat ware with the wash chamber of a commercial dishwasher. Concentrated warewash chemistries are thus directly applied onto ware within commercial dishwasher and circumvent diluting the chemistry in the machine's wash tank or incoming water line.

[0014]These and/or other objects, features, advantages, aspects, and/or embodiments will become apparent to those skilled in the art after reviewing the following brief and detailed descriptions of the drawings. Furthermore, the present disclosure encompasses aspects and/or embodiments not expressly disclosed but which can be understood from a reading of the present disclosure, including at least: (a) combinations of disclosed aspects and/or embodiments and/or (b) reasonable modifications not shown or described.

[0015]While multiple embodiments are disclosed, still other embodiments will become apparent to those skilled in the art from the following detailed description, which shows and describes illustrative embodiments. Accordingly, the drawings and detailed description are to be regarded as illustrative in nature and not restrictive.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0016]The patent or application file contains at least one drawing executed in color. Copies of this patent or patent application publication with color drawing(s) will be provided by the Office upon request and payment of the necessary fee.

[0017]Several embodiments in which the present disclosure can be practiced are illustrated and described in detail, wherein like reference characters represent like components throughout the several views. The drawings are presented for exemplary purposes and may not be to scale unless otherwise indicated.

[0018]FIG. 1 illustrates the components of the automated cleaning apparatus, such as a dishwash machine, according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0019]FIGS. 2A-2C illustrate a direct spray chemical application system and other advanced features for improved machine warewashing applications.

[0020]FIGS. 3A-3J show the state of the art, dosing a concentrated cleaning composition, Chemistry 1, into the sump and applying it diluted via a sump solution to a plurality of tea stained tiles.

[0021]FIGS. 4A-4C show the comparison of the tea stained tiles all directly sprayed with Chemistry 1 and then washed with water at low or high temperatures.

[0022]FIGS. 5A-5E shows the comparison of tea-stained tiles sprayed with various amounts of sump water with no chemistry, or varying concentrations of Chemistry 1 or Chemistry 2.

[0023]FIGS. 6A-6F show a series of tiles with tea soil stains that are sprayed with sump water along with Chemistry 1 or Chemistry 2. The tiles show the varying soil removal.

[0024]FIGS. 7A-7E show a series of tiles sprayed directly with Chemistry 1 at varying wash times and washed with water in sump at high temperatures between about 150-160° F. The tiles are displayed to show the soil removal.

[0025]FIGS. 8A-8E show a series of tiles sprayed directly with Chemistry 1 at varying wash times and washed with 17 gpg of water in the sump at low temperatures.

[0026]FIGS. 9A-9E show a series of tiles stained with 6 different types of foods and washed with sump water in 3 wash cycles. The tiles are displayed to show the soil removal.

[0027]FIGS. 10A-10H show a series of tiles that had been treated with Chemistries 1-4 either via a sump solution or directly on each tile. The tiles are displayed to show a comparison of the soil removal and the impact of application pH to the tiles.

[0028]FIGS. 11A-11D show a series of tiles stained with tea and treated with Competitive Control 1 and Competitive Control 2 either directly onto the tile or via a sump solution. The tiles are displayed to show the soil removal.

[0029]FIGS. 12A-12G show a concentration pH application to each tile stained with caustic or ash solution. The figure shows the soil removal of each series of tiles.

[0030]FIGS. 13A-13D show tea-stained tiles treated with Chemistry 1 delivered via sump solution and washed with various amounts of food soil in the sump. The tiles show the results of soil removal.

[0031]FIGS. 14A-14H show a group of tea plates with tea stains, each treated Chemistry 1 with various concentrations of food soil in the sump, or no food soil at all. The tea stains are displayed to show the results of each wash.

[0032]FIGS. 15A-15C show a series of tiles with various food stains and are sprayed directly with Chemistry 3 or delivered Chemistry 3 via a sump solution. The tiles are displayed to show the results of each wash.

[0033]FIGS. 16A(1-2), 16B(1-6), and 16C(1-2) show a series of tiles washed a high or low temperatures utilizing Chemistry 1 and active caustic solutions delivered via a sump solution, or solely active caustic delivered via the sump solutions to assess their effectiveness at cleaning the tea stained tiles. The tiles are displayed to show the results of each wash.

[0034]FIGS. 17A-17C show a series of tiles that were treated with various concentrations of caustic solutions sprayed directly onto the tiles and active caustic delivered via the sump water of the dishmachine. The tiles are displayed to show which concentration was most effective after the results of each wash.

[0035]FIGS. 18A-18E show a series of tiles that were treated with various concentrations of caustic cleaning compositions sprayed directly onto the tiles and active caustic delivered demonstrating low actives concentrations required for efficacious cleaning compared to state of the art delivery of chemistry via the sump water of the dishmachine.

[0036]FIGS. 19A-19H show a series of tiles that were treated with various concentrations of an alkaline all-purpose cleaning compositions sprayed directly onto the tiles and total amount (g) of composition contacted directly onto the tiles for efficacious cleaning instead of conventional delivery of chemistry via the sump water of a dishmachine.

[0037]FIGS. 20A-20B show the traditional cycle with sump diluted chemistry evaluated in Example 14 providing a control to the direct spray shown in FIGS. 19A-19H.

[0038]FIGS. 21A-21H show a series of tiles that were treated with various concentrations of a heavy duty alkaline cleaning compositions sprayed directly onto the tiles and total amount (g) of composition contacted directly onto the tiles for efficacious cleaning instead of conventional delivery of chemistry via the sump water of a dishmachine.

[0039]FIGS. 22A-22B show the traditional cycle with sump diluted chemistry evaluated in Example 15 providing a control to the direct spray shown in FIGS. 21A-21H.

[0040]FIGS. 23A-23E show a series of tiles that were treated with the more dilute 5% concentration of the heavy duty alkaline cleaning compositions sprayed directly onto the tiles and total amount (g) of composition contacted directly onto the tiles for efficacious cleaning instead of conventional delivery of chemistry via the sump water of a dishmachine. FIGS. 24A-24E show a series of tiles that were treated with the more dilute 5% concentration of the heavy duty alkaline cleaning compositions sprayed directly onto the tiles and total amount (g) of composition contacted directly onto the tiles for efficacious cleaning instead of conventional delivery of chemistry via the sump water of a dishmachine.

[0041]FIGS. 25A-25E show a series of tiles that were treated with the more dilute 2% concentration of the heavy duty alkaline cleaning compositions sprayed directly onto the tiles and total amount (g) of composition contacted directly onto the tiles for efficacious cleaning instead of conventional delivery of chemistry via the sump water of a dishmachine.

[0042]FIGS. 26A-26D show a series of tiles that were treated with the more dilute 1% concentration of the heavy duty alkaline cleaning compositions sprayed directly onto the tiles and total amount (g) of composition contacted directly onto the tiles for efficacious cleaning instead of conventional delivery of chemistry via the sump water of a dishmachine.

[0043]FIGS. 27A-27E show a series of tiles that were treated with a direct spray chemistry with additional dwell time for the chemistry.

[0044]FIGS. 28A-28E show a series of tiles that were treated with a direct spray chemistry without the additional dwell time for the chemistry.

[0045]Various embodiments of the present disclosure will be described in detail with reference to the drawings, wherein like reference numerals represent like parts throughout the several views. Reference to various embodiments does not limit the scope of the disclosure. Figures represented herein are not limitations to the various embodiments according to the disclosure and are presented as exemplary illustrations of the invention. An artisan of ordinary skill in the art need not view, within isolated figure(s), the near infinite number of distinct permutations of features described in the following detailed description to facilitate an understanding of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0046]The present disclosure is not to be limited to that described herein, which can vary and are understood by skilled artisans. No features shown or described are essential to permit basic operation of the present disclosure unless otherwise indicated. It has been surprisingly found that the direct application of a cleaning or rinsing composition to an article in a dishmachine instead of applying the cleaning or rinsing composition as diluted chemistry from the sump of the dishmachine results in enhanced cleaning or rinsing compared to methods employing a greater concentration of the diluted composition while providing benefits of reduced cycle time and water consumption.

[0047]It is further to be understood that all terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing particular embodiments only, and is not intended to be limiting in any manner or scope. For example, as used in this specification and the appended claims, the singular forms “a,” “an” and “the” can include plural referents unless the content clearly indicates otherwise. Further, all units, prefixes, and symbols may be denoted in its SI accepted form.

[0048]Numeric ranges recited within the specification are inclusive of the numbers defining the range and include each integer within the defined range. Throughout this disclosure, various aspects of this disclosure are presented in a range format. It should be understood that the description in range format is merely for convenience and brevity and should not be construed as an inflexible limitation on the scope of the disclosure. Accordingly, the description of a range should be considered to have specifically disclosed all the possible sub-ranges, fractions, and individual numerical values within that range. For example, description of a range such as from 1 to 6 should be considered to have specifically disclosed sub-ranges such as from 1 to 3, from 1 to 4, from 1 to 5, from 2 to 4, from 2 to 6, from 3 to 6 etc., as well as individual numbers within that range, for example, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, and 6, and decimals and fractions, for example, 1.2, 3.8, 1½, and 4¾. This applies regardless of the breadth of the range.

[0049]All publications, including all patents, patent applications and other patent and non-patent publications cited or mentioned herein are incorporated herein by reference for at least the purposes that they are cited; including for example, for the disclosure or descriptions of methods of materials which may be used. Nothing herein is to be construed as an admission that a publication or other reference (including any reference cited in the Background section) is prior art to the invention or that the invention is not entitled to antedate such disclosure, for example, by virtue of prior invention.

[0050]As used herein, the term “and/or”, e.g., “X and/or Y” shall be understood to mean either “X and Y” or “X or Y” and shall be taken to provide explicit support for both meanings or for either meaning, e.g. A and/or B includes the options i) A, ii) B or iii) A and B.

[0051]It is to be appreciated that certain features that are, for clarity, described herein in the context of separate embodiments, may also be provided in combination in a single embodiment. Conversely, various features that are, for brevity, described in the context of a single embodiment, may also be provided separately or in any sub-combination.

[0052]The methods and compositions of the present disclosure may comprise, consist essentially of, or consist of the components and ingredients of the present disclosure as well as other ingredients described herein. As used herein, “consisting essentially of” means that the methods, systems, apparatuses and compositions may include additional steps, components or ingredients, but only if the additional steps, components or ingredients do not materially alter the basic and novel characteristics of the claimed methods, systems, apparatuses, and compositions.

[0053]Unless defined otherwise, all technical and scientific terms used above have the same meaning as commonly understood by one of ordinary skill in the art to which embodiments of the present disclosure pertain.

[0054]The terms “invention” or “present invention” are not intended to refer to any single embodiment of the particular invention but encompass all possible embodiments as described in the specification and the claims.

[0055]The term “about,” as used herein, refers to variation in the numerical quantity that can occur, for example, through typical measuring techniques and equipment, with respect to any quantifiable variable, including, but not limited to, concentration, mass, volume, time, molecular weight, temperature, pH, molar ratios, and the like. Further, given solid and liquid handling procedures used in the real world, there is certain inadvertent error and variation that is likely through differences in the manufacture, source, or purity of the ingredients used to make the compositions or carry out the methods and the like. The term “about” also encompasses these variations. Whether or not modified by the term “about,” the claims include equivalents to the quantities.

[0056]The term “actives” or “percent actives” or “percent by weight actives” or “actives concentration” are used interchangeably herein and refers to the concentration of those ingredients involved in cleaning expressed as a percentage minus inert ingredients such as water or salts. It is also sometimes indicated by a percentage in parentheses, for example, “chemical (10%).”

[0057]As used herein, the term “between” is inclusive of any endpoints noted relative to a described range.

[0058]As used herein, the term “cleaning” refers to a method used to facilitate or aid in soil removal, bleaching, microbial population reduction, and any combination thereof. As used herein, the term “microorganism” refers to any noncellular or unicellular (including colonial) organism. Microorganisms include all prokaryotes. Microorganisms include bacteria (including cyanobacteria), spores, lichens, fungi, protozoa, virinos, viroids, viruses, phages, and some algae. As used herein, the term “microbe” is synonymous with microorganism.

[0059]The term “configured” describes structure capable of performing a task or adopting a particular configuration. The term “configured” can be used interchangeably with other similar phrases, such as constructed, arranged, adapted, manufactured, and the like.

[0060]Terms characterizing sequential order, a position, and/or an orientation are not limiting and are only referenced according to the views presented.

[0061]As used herein, the term “exemplary” refers to an example, an instance, or an illustration, and does not indicate a most preferred embodiment unless otherwise stated.

[0062]The phrase “free of” or similar phrases if used herein means that the composition comprises 0% of the stated component and refers to a composition where the component has not been intentionally added. However, it will be appreciated that such components may incidentally form thereafter, under some circumstances, or such component may be incidentally present, e.g., as an incidental contaminant.

[0063]The term “generally” encompasses both “about” and “substantially.”

[0064]As used herein, the term “soil” or “stain” refers to any soil, including, but not limited to, non-polar oily and/or hydrophobic substances which may or may not contain particulate matter such as industrial soils, mineral clays, sand, natural mineral matter, carbon black, graphite, kaolin, environmental dust, and/or food based soils such as blood, proteinaceous soils, starchy soils, fatty soils, cellulosic soils, etc.

[0065]The “scope” of the present disclosure is defined by the appended claims, along with the full scope of equivalents to which such claims are entitled. The scope of the disclosure is further qualified as including any possible modification to any of the aspects and/or embodiments disclosed herein which would result in other embodiments, combinations, subcombinations, or the like that would be obvious to those skilled in the art.

[0066]The term “substantially” refers to a great or significant extent. “Substantially” can thus refer to a plurality, majority, and/or a supermajority of said quantifiable variable, given proper context.

[0067]As used herein, the term “substantially free” refers to compositions completely lacking the component or having such a small amount of the component that the component does not affect the performance of the composition. The component may be present as an impurity or as a contaminant and shall be less than 0.5 wt-%. In another embodiment, the amount of the component is less than 0.1 wt-% and in yet another embodiment, the amount of component is less than 0.01 wt-%.

[0068]The term “surfactant” or “surface active agent” refers to an organic chemical that when added to a liquid changes the properties of that liquid at a surface.

[0069]As used herein the terms “use solution,” “ready to use,” or variations thereof refer to a composition that is diluted, for example, with water, to form a use composition having the desired components of active ingredients for cleaning. For reasons of economics, a concentrate can be marketed, and an end-user can dilute the concentrate with water or an aqueous diluent to a use solution.

[0070]As used herein, the term “ware” refers to items such as eating and cooking utensils, dishes, and other hard surfaces such as showers, sinks, toilets, bathtubs, countertops, windows, mirrors, transportation vehicles, and floors. As used herein, the term “warewashing” refers to washing, cleaning, or rinsing ware. Ware also refers to items made of plastic. Types of plastics that can be cleaned with the compositions include but are not limited to, those that include polypropylene polymers (PP), polycarbonate polymers (PC), melamine formaldehyde resins or melamine resin (melamine), acrylonitrile-butadiene-styrene polymers (ABS), and polysulfone polymers (PS). Other exemplary plastics that can be cleaned using the compounds and compositions of the disclosure include polyethylene terephthalate (PET) polystyrene polyamide.

[0071]The term “weight percent,” “wt-%,” “percent by weight,” “% by weight,” and variations thereof, as used herein, refer to the concentration of a substance as the weight of that substance divided by the total weight of the composition and multiplied by 100. It is understood that, as used here, “percent,” “%,” and the like are intended to be synonymous with “weight percent,” “wt-%,” etc.

Warewashing Methods

[0072]Warewashing methods or methods of cleaning an article in a dishmachine are provided. The methods include applying a cleaning or rinsing composition directly to an article or articles in a dishmachine, wherein the direct application does not dilute the cleaning or rinsing composition in a sump of the dishmachine before contacting the article(s). The methods include washing the article(s) in the dishmachine with water from the sump of the dishmachine. It is unexpected that the direct application of the compositions before washing the article(s) in the dishmachine with water from the sump results in improved performance even though the methods dose the cleaning or rinsing composition at a total concentration less than a cleaning or rinsing composition applied as diluted chemistry from the sump of the dishmachine. In some embodiments the direct application of the cleaning or rinsing composition provides a concentrated chemistry. In some embodiments the direct application of the cleaning or rinsing composition provides a concentrated chemistry having a concentration at least about 2 times to about 100 times greater, at least about 2 times to about 400 times greater percentage of active ingredients than a concentration of actives of the same cleaning or rinsing composition when applied as diluted chemistry from the sump of the dishmachine.

[0073]The direct application of the cleaning or rinsing compositions can include a contact time from about 1 second to about 15 seconds, from about 1 second to about 10 seconds, or from about 1 second to about 5 seconds, or any range therebetween. In embodiments, the direct application of the cleaning or rinsing compositions can include a contact time of at least about 1 second, at least about 5 seconds, or at least about 10 seconds, or any range therebetween. The reference to contact time in the methods of cleaning described herein refers to the spray time for contacting the cleaning or rinsing compositions on the treated surfaces.

[0074]The contacting time can also be followed by an optional additional dwell time to provide additional contact time for the cleaning or rinsing compositions on the treated surfaces. The optional dwell time can include a dwell time from about 1 second to about 15 seconds, from about 1 second to about 10 seconds, or from about 1 second to about 5 seconds, or any range therebetween. The additional dwell time can be referred to as a prewash or prerinse pause in the warewashing steps described herein.

[0075]In some embodiments there may be more than one spray and/or dwell time. This contacting time takes place before a washing step with water from the sump.

[0076]The washing step with water from the sump following the direct application of the cleaning or rinsing compositions can include a cycle time from about 1 second to about 5 minutes, from about 1 second to about 45 seconds, from about 1 second to about 30 seconds, or from about 1 second to about 15 seconds, or any range therebetween. As one skilled in the art will appreciate the longer wash times, such as up to about 5 minutes, are particularly suitable for pot and pan applications compared to conventional warewashing applications.

[0077]It is beneficial that the direct application of the cleaning or rinsing compositions provides such significant improvements in cleaning that the overall cycle time, the total cleaning cycle time, can be reduced. This reduction of cycle time for the dishmachine beneficially provides an increased cleaning efficacy throughout of the dishwashing machine. In a still further benefit the reduced cleaning cycle time also provides a beneficial reduction in the water consumption during the warewashing. Beneficially the methods described for the direct application of the cleaning or rinsing compositions further reduce the overall labor and/or time associated with a traditional warewashing method.

[0078]The methods can employ water of various conditions, including softened water or hard water without negatively impacting the efficacy of the cleaning of the articles. In embodiments the water has a hardness level from about 0 grains per gallon (gpg) to about 17 gpg.

[0079]The methods can employ water at various temperatures, including from about 95° F. (35° C.) to about 176° F. (80° C.). The temperature of washing steps can vary depending on the dishmachine, for example if the dishmachine is a consumer dishmachine or an institutional dishmachine. The temperature of the washing step, namely the temperature of the water from the sump in a consumer dish machine is typically about 110° F. (43° C.) to about 150° F. (66° C.) with a rinse up to about 160° F. (71° C.). The temperature of the washing step in a high temperature institutional dishmachine in the U.S. is about typically about 150° F. (66° C.) to about 165° F. (74° C.) with a rinse from about 180° F. (82° C.) to about 195° F. (91° C.). The temperature in a low temperature institutional dishmachine in the U.S. is typically about 120° F. (49° C.) to about 140° F. (60° C.). The temperature in a high temperature institutional dishmachine in non-US markets, such as Asia, is typically from about 131° F. (55° C.) to about 136° F. (58° C.) with a final rinse at 180° F. (82° C.).

[0080]An even further reduction in water consumption is achieved by the methods as the washing step of the article(s) in the dishmachine after the direct application of the composition is with water from the sump of the dishmachine. This sump water can be recycled for numerous cycles as the direct application of the compositions provides efficacious cleaning or rinsing that enables the washing cycle to use recycled water under various conditions, including water hardness levels and total dissolved solids (TDS).

[0081]In embodiments, wherein the water is reused in the dishmachine any number of washing cycles can reuse the sump water until an undesirable level of foaming within the dishmachine is met requiring the dumping and refilling of the sump, or until a threshold change in cleaning efficacy is met requiring the dumping and refilling of the sump, and/or until a maximum threshold for TDS within the dishmachine exceeds a level requiring the sump to be dumped and refilled. In some embodiments, a TDS threshold of at least about 20,000 TDS, at least about 30,000 TDS, at least about 50,000 TDS, or greater is met before dumping and refilling the sump. The ability to use and reuse sump water for the warewashing cycles beneficially reduces water consumption through reuse of the water in the dishmachine.

[0082]The methods described can employ either use solutions of the cleaning or rinsing compositions, or alternatively can employ concentrate compositions. The methods described provide improved cleaning and rinsing efficacy compared to methods employing the greater concentration of the diluted composition from the sump of the dishmachine.

[0083]In an embodiment where the cleaning or rinsing composition applied directly to the article(s) is a concentrated chemistry, beneficially a diluted concentrated can be applied directly to the articles due to the lower concentration required according to the methods described herein, compared to dosing of the concentrated cleaning or rinsing composition into the sump of the dishmachine. In embodiments a concentrated cleaning or rinsing composition can be diluted by about a factor of 5, 10, 15, or greater. For example, a 20% or greater concentrate can be diluted to about 0.5% for the direct application of the cleaning or rinsing composition.

[0084]The manner by which the direct applying of the cleaning or rinsing composition is achieved with the dishmachine is a non-limiting embodiment of the methods. Various contacting methods are known for applying a liquid composition within a dishmachine, such as spraying, foaming, misting, atomizing or other types of nozzles for administering the compositions, or a combination thereof. In an embodiment, the direct applying of the composition is by an upper and/or lower spray arm within the dishmachine. In another embodiment, the direct applying of the composition is by one or a plurality of misting, atomizing, or other nozzles within the dishmachine. The contacting of the composition substantially covers the article(s) with the cleaning or rinsing composition.

[0085]Various amounts of the compositions can be applied to the article(s) based on factors including the type and concentration of the cleaning or rinsing composition, the nature and degree of the soils on the article(s), the temperature of the water for the washing cycle, the type of water in the washing cycle, and the like as will be apparent to a skilled artisan based on the disclosure herein.

[0086]In some embodiments, the spraying, foaming, misting, atomizing or other types of nozzles for administering the compositions applies from about 1 gram to about 75 grams of the cleaning or rinsing composition. In some embodiments, the spraying, foaming, misting, atomizing or other types of nozzles for administering the compositions applies from about 1 gram to about 50 grams of the cleaning or rinsing composition. In some embodiments, the spraying, foaming, misting, atomizing or other types of nozzles for administering the compositions applies from about 25 ppm to about 2,000 ppm cleaning or rinsing composition, or from about 50 ppm to about 1,000 ppm cleaning or rinsing composition, including all ranges therebetween.

[0087]In embodiments where the cleaning composition is a caustic composition, the spraying, foaming, misting, atomizing or other types of nozzles for administering the compositions applies at least about 25 ppm active caustic, or at least about 50 ppm active caustic to the article. In further embodiments wherein the cleaning composition is a caustic composition, the spraying, foaming, misting, atomizing or other types of nozzles for administering the compositions applies from about 25 ppm to about 2,000 ppm active caustic, or from about 50 ppm to about 1,000 ppm active caustic to the article.

[0088]The methods described can employ a variety of cleaning compositions, rinsing compositions, or a combination of cleaning and rinsing compositions. In embodiments the composition is a detergent, a rinse aid, or a combination thereof. The compositions preferably have an alkaline pH and can contain a variety of actives for cleaning and/or rinsing wares. pH ranges for the alkaline pH can vary depending upon the types of soils to be removed and cleaned.

[0089]Exemplary alkaline compositions can include one or more alkalinity sources and/or alkaline carriers. Some non-limiting suitable examples include the following: a hydroxide such as sodium hydroxide or potassium hydroxide; an alkali silicate; an ethanolamine such as triethanolamine, diethanolamine, and monoethanolamine; an alkali carbonate; and mixtures thereof. The alkalinity is preferably a hydroxide or a mixture of hydroxides. The alkaline composition preferably creates a diluted solution having a pH from about 7 to about 14, more preferably from about 9 to about 13, and most preferably from about 10 to about 12.

[0090]The alkaline compositions may optionally include additional ingredients. For example, the alkaline composition may include a surfactants, polymers, water conditioning agents, chelants, enzymes (such as for example the proteases, amylases, cellulases, and lipases), enzyme stabilizing systems, binding agents, antimicrobial agents, bleaching agents, defoaming agent/foam inhibitors, antiredeposition agents, catalysts, chlorine scavenger anions, dye or odorant, carriers, hydrotropes, coupling agents, or solubilizers that aid in compositional stability, and aqueous formulation, and mixtures thereof any of the aforementioned in formulating the cleaning or rinsing compositions for use herein.

[0091]The methods can further include an initial manual or automatic step for removing bulk or scrap soils from the article(s). In an embodiment the methods further comprise a first step of bulk removal or prescrapping of soils from the articles before they are placed in the dishmachine. In still other embodiments, the methods further comprise a first step of bulk removal or prescrapping of soils from the articles that takes place within the dishmachine.

[0092]The methods can further include an initial preflush or rinse step of the article(s) in the dishmachine before applying the cleaning or rinsing composition. As referred to herein, a preflush is used to remove significant amounts of soils, such as greater than about 5 g of soils and/or larger solid masses (e.g. noodles, meatballs, etc.). As referred to herein, a rinse step is what is used for removing soils, such as greater than about 5 g of soils, that are predominantly or all liquid mass (e.g. sauces, ketchup, soup, etc.).

[0093]The methods can further include a final rinsing step, without or without the use of a rinsing composition and/or rinse aid.

[0094]The methods are not limited to the type of dishmachine for performing the methods. A variety of dish machines can be employed, including consumer or institutional dish machines, including for example those described in U.S. Pat. No. 8,092,613, which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety, including all figures and drawings. The dish machines may be either single tank or multi-tank machines. In a preferred embodiment the dishmachine is an institutional dish machine. Exemplary dishmachines include for example, a door dish machine, a conveyor dish machine, an undercounter dish machine, a glasswasher, a flight dish machine, a pot and pan dish machine and a utensil washer.

[0095]A door dish machine, also called a hood dish machine, refers to a commercial dishmachine wherein the soiled dishes are placed on a rack and the rack is then moved into the dishmachine. Door dishmachines clean one or two racks at a time. In such machines, the rack is stationary and the wash and rinse arms move. A door machine includes two sets arms, a set of wash arms and a rinse arm, or a set of rinse arms.

[0096]Door machines may be a high temperature or low temperature machine. In a high temperature machine the dishes are sanitized by hot water. In a low temperature machine the dishes are sanitized by the chemical sanitizer. The door machine may either be a recirculation machine or a dump and fill machine. In a recirculation machine, the cleaning solution is reused, or “recirculated” between wash cycles. In a dump and fill machine, the wash solution is not reused between wash cycles. New detergent solution is added before the next wash cycle. As described herein, the methods of the invention benefit from the use of a recirculation machine over a dump and fill machine. Some non-limiting examples of door machines include the Ecolab Omega HT, the Hobart AM-14, the Ecolab ES-2000, the Hobart LT-1, the CMA EVA-200, American Dish Service L-3DW and HT-25, the Autochlor A5, the Champion D-1-1B, and the Jackson Tempstar.

EMBODIMENTS

EXAMPLES

[0120]Embodiments of the present disclosure are further defined in the following non-limiting Examples. It should be understood that these Examples, while indicating certain embodiments of the disclosure, are given by way of illustration only. From the above discussion and these Examples, one skilled in the art can ascertain the essential characteristics of this disclosure, and without departing from the spirit and scope thereof, can make various changes and modifications of the embodiments of the disclosure to adapt it to various usages and conditions. Thus, various modifications of the embodiments of the disclosure, in addition to those shown and described herein, will be apparent to those skilled in the art from the foregoing description. Such modifications are also intended to fall within the scope of the appended claims.

[0121]A series of tiles were stained with various soils and used a direct application of concentrated cleaning or rinsing composition in a dishmachine utilizing various testing conditions as described in the examples to demonstrate improved stain removal through the direct chemistry application described herein. The tiles were tested with different application methods utilizing different concentrated cleaning or rinsing compositions to evaluate soil removal as described in the following examples.

[0122]Each of the series of tiles in the examples as follows were washed in a dishmachine with concentrated chemistry delivered through a dispenser system within the dishmachine. Utilizing either a manual method where a pump was used to generate pressure and release chemistry on the ware externally, 23 grams of chemistry was delivered per spray, and allowed to sit on the wares for 5 to 10 seconds, followed by a wash cycle 1 time. The Examples that follow demonstrate various wash times, various temperatures, chemistries used and the results of soil removal from each.

[0123]Referring to FIG. 1, the components of an automated cleaning apparatus 120 are illustrated according to one exemplary embodiment of the present invention. The cleaning apparatus 120 includes a shelf 122 which the articles to be washed are placed. The cleaning apparatus 120 may be a commercial recirculated wash type dish machine with a standard dish rack, although other cleaning apparatuses may be employed, including without limitation cleaning apparatuses for cleaning articles where direct application of the cleaning or concentrated product to the article provides benefits over existing systems.

[0124]The cleaning apparatus 120 includes a cabinet body 124 housing the shelf 122. A wash tank or sump 126 is included for holding generally a large amount of bulk wash liquids used in the cleaning process. A pump is connected in fluid communication with the wash tank or sump 126 for increasing the pressure of the liquid in the wash tank or sump 126 and directing it to wash spray arms 130 and 132. The wash spray arms 130 and 132 include nozzles for directing the liquid onto the articles 134 in the rack 136. In addition to the lower and upper wash spray arm 130 and 132, the cleaning apparatus 120 may include a lower rinse spray arm 138 and an upper rinse spray arm 140 for directing rinsing liquids onto articles 134 in the rack 136. The spray pressure may be controlled by controlling the pump action or by use of a manifold valve (not shown). For example, when washing a lighter, plastic article, a lower spray pressure from the lower wash or rinse arm may be desirable so as not to disorientate the article within the cleaning apparatus 120.

[0125]An identifier (not shown) is positioned on the rack 136. This will allow identification of the types of articles 134 loaded onto the rack 136. The identifier is preferably pre-programmed with unique identifying information, such as an identifier value indicating the type of rack 136 being used, i.e., a rack designated for cups, plates, flatware, glasses, pots and pans, etc. Identification of the articles could also be done, for example, by use of specifically designed ware racks 136; by use of optical recognition; by use of bar codes; by color of the rack 136; by affixing a transponder to the articles 134 themselves; or by use of a proximity sensor. Examples of various types of articles 134 include without limitation, glassware, pots and pans, plates, cups, flatware, coffee cups, aluminum sheet pans, and any other article type associated with a common cleaning sequence, such as those that could be cleaned using apparatus 120 of the present invention.

[0126]The cleaning apparatus 120 could also include a user interface, such as a graphical user interface (“GUI”), for an operator or user to manually input the type of articles 1134 loaded onto the rack 136. Using the automated article identifying method and system described above and incorporated by reference herein, the control device upon detection of the identifier associated with the rack 136 indicating the type of articles 134 to be cleaned, may be displayed at the user interface 142 for indicating to the operator or user the type of articles or wares that the cleaning apparatus 120 has identified in the rack 136.

[0127]The cleaning apparatus 120 also includes a chemical dispenser 146 adapted to receive chemical dispensing instructions from the controller 144. The dispenser 146 may include any number of cleaning or concentrated products, such as cleaning chemicals for dispensing to the cleaning apparatus 120. The dispenser 146 includes one or more dispenser pumps. For example, depending upon the number of chemicals being dispensed, the number of dispenser pumps may be altered accordingly. In an exemplary embodiment of the present invention, the dispenser 146 includes three or more, or six or less dispenser pumps. Additional dispenser pumps are possible. The term pump could be an aspirator or other means for delivering a chemical to be sprayed onto the soiled surface of the articles loaded in the rack 136. The dispenser 146 can be connected in fluid communication with spray points within the body of the cleaning apparatus 120. In one aspect of the present invention, the cleaning apparatus 120 includes one or more lower spray points 148 and/or one or more upper spray points 150. The upper and lower spray points 148 and 150 include nozzles with an opening directed at the rack 136 and articles 134 in the rack 136. Depending upon the article and/or the soil type on the article, the controller 144 provides a dispensing instruction to the dispenser 146 for spraying product, such as chemicals, from either the top or bottom or both spray points within the cleaning apparatus 120. The spray points are generally determined based on the type of ware and/or the soil type on the ware being cleaned. For cups, product is sprayed directly onto the cups loaded in the rack 136 from the lower spray points 148 to apply product onto the soiled inner surface of the cups. For example, to effectively remove tea and coffee stains from coffee cups, the concentrated product is dispensed from the lower spray points since cups are traditionally loaded face down in the rack 136. Similarly, for plates, the product is sprayed from the upper spray points 150 so as to be applied directly to the surface of the plate needing to be cleaned. Since plates generally face upward when loaded in the rack 136, applying product from the upper spray points 150 provides the most efficient and effective use of product being dispensed directly onto the plates. Conversely, applying concentrated product from the lower spray points 148 to the backside of the plates is wasteful. Product could be dispensed from both the lower spray point 148 and the upper spray points 150 simultaneously if needed for articles that are soiled on both the top and bottom surfaces. In another aspect of the present invention, concentrated chemical is applied to the articles 134 using the lower rinse spray arm 138 and/or the upper rinse spray arm 140 based upon the concentrated product dispense cycle, the wash cycle or the rinse cycle. In this embodiment, the dispenser 146 is connected in fluid communication with the lower rinse spray arm 138 and the upper rinse spray arm 140 for directing concentrated product from the dispenser onto the onto articles 134 in the rack 136. Thus, the cleaning apparatus 120 may be configured without the upper and lower spray points 148 and 150 shown in FIG. 1 when the dispenser applies concentrated product onto the articles 134 using the lower rinse spray arm 138 and the upper rinse spray arm 140. In this manner, cleaning products such as chemicals are only applied generally to the soiled surface of the article being cleaned rather than all the surfaces of the article. Although the cleaning apparatus 120 illustrates both lower and upper spray points 148 and 150, the present invention contemplates that additional spray points may be included depending on the ware type being cleaned. For example, spray points may be included at side or corner locations within the cabinet body of the cleaning apparatus 120 to provide the best angle for spraying and applying cleaning or concentrated product directly onto the soiled surface of the articles 134.

[0128]The controller 144 of the present invention is programmed to spray concentrated product, wash liquid and rinse liquid from the upper and/or lower spray points 148 and 150 based upon at least one or more of the following factors, including the product dispensing sequence, the article type, soil type, ware type, water condition, the concentrated product type, the wash cycle, the rinse cycle, the detergent concentration of the recirculated wash, etc.

[0129]The present invention contemplates that the cleaning apparatus 120 may include any number of product dispensing sequences stored on a data storage device (not shown) in operable control and communication with controller 144. The data storage device (not shown) may be used to store an array of pre-determined chemical combinations and cycle sequences and durations specifying cleaning chemicals to be used according to the various types of articles and/or soil type.

[0130]This method of introducing warewash chemistries directly into the wash tank of a dish machine and then recirculating across the ware can be affected by varying water conditions, temperatures, and food soil loads.

[0131]By directly apply the chemistry to the ware surface via a fine spray we can circumvent these factors while also achieving increased wash performance due to the concentrated nature of the chemistry. Additionally, an improved direct spray system 200 focuses around auto-prescrapping, as is now more common for commercial dishwashers to run even higher food soil loads. The improved direct spray system 200 repurposes the machines 120 onboard delime pump to pump alternate chemistry through a pipe manifold and nozzles. Following that concept, the design moved to new pumps, routed tubing, and fogging nozzles to provide a fine mist of chemical spray.

[0132]The improved direct spray system 200 of FIGS. 2A-2C improves the machine 120 with the addition and/or substitution of the components 202-212 with respect to the components 122-150. As such, reference characters for components 122-150 are omitted within FIGS. 2A-2C so that discussion is focused on the components 202-212.

[0133]FIG. 2A outlines the general schematic for the improved direct spray system 200. A control board 202 controls operation of two distinct pumps 204A, 204B each able to deliver small volumes of respective chemistries 206A, 206B to hydraulic atomizing nozzles 208A, 208B. These nozzles 208A, 208B shear the chemistries 206A, 206B into a fine mist 210 that coats entire surfaces within the wash chamber 212.

[0134]The control board 202 can control both the order and duration of the spray within the wash sequence, which can be setup for specific ware types and soils.

[0135]FIG. 2B shows a design of the pumping system 204 to deliver chemistries 206A, 206B. In this pumping system 204, the pumps 204A, 204B are able to provide sufficient pressure to effectively shear the chemistries 206A, 206B through the atomizing nozzles 208A, 208B and mist the wash chamber. The pumps 204A, 204B are set up to deliver chemistry 206A, 206B to various nozzle locations independently (e.g. the chemistry A nozzle 208A, and the Chemistry B nozzle 208B, and upper and lower spray points 148, 150).

[0136]FIG. 2C shows the nozzle system 208, which includes the internal mounting of the nozzles 208A, 208B within the wash chamber 212. Multiple nozzles 208A, 208B are able to spray multiple chemistries 206A, 206B independently to provide full coverage of the wash chamber area. Additional sets of nozzles 216A, 216B are located on the lower side of the wash chamber 212 and oriented upwards to spray ware from underneath.

Example 1

[0137]Cleaning performance on ceramic tiles were evaluated to demonstrate the state of the art in needing significant concentrations of chemistry to remove challenging soils. FIG. 3 shows a series of tea-stained tiles tested by dosing a detergent chemistry into the sump of a dishmachine over increasing concentrations. The tiles were washed with water in a high temperature machine at a temperature between 150-160° F. from within the sump of the dishmachine and applied Chemistry 1, a commercially-available caustic detergent with threshold polymer, diluted in the sump of the dishmachine to the ware. FIGS. 3A-3J display 2 rows of 5 groups of tiles tested at increasing concentrations of the sump diluted Chemistry 1. The series of tiles were sprayed with 17 gpg (grain per gallon) of water with initially no chemistry (3A) and then increasing concentrations of the Chemistry 1 denoted under each tile (3B-3J).

[0138]The first series of tiles on the left of the first row was washed with 17 gpg of water from the sump without any chemistry. This indicated the control set of tea-stained tiles. The remaining tiles left to right in each of the two rows shows the results of treating each series of tiles with various concentrations of Chemistry 1 applied from the sump. The concentrations of chemistry used ranged from 1000 ppm to 10,000 ppm, wherein an increasing amount of the chemistry was dosed into the sump to achieve the desired concentrations from 1000 ppm to 10,000 ppm. As shown in FIG. 3J, the tiles treated with 10,000 ppm of Chemistry 1 achieved the most significant tea stain removal, although notably there remained staining on the tiles. This indicates that the state of the art methods of dosing chemistry into the sump of a dishmachine may not provide effective stain removal in various applications of use, despite applying concentrations up to 10,000 ppm to clean the tea-stained tiles.

[0139]FIGS. 4A-4C shows a series of three groups of tea-stained tiles. Each of the tiles were placed inside a dishmachine, where each series of tiles were sprayed with chemistry from top nozzles in the machine with approximately 23 grams of product or 700 ppm chemistry. This direct application of the chemistry was compared across various temperature conditions at the 700 ppm concentration applied to the tiles. The first series of tiles on the left (4A) were washed using 17 gpg sump water sprayed at 153° F. The second series of tiles (4B) were washed at a lower temperature of 133° F. The third series of tiles (4C) were washed at the lowest temperature 103° F.

[0140]Each of the three series of tiles shown in FIGS. 4A-4C were cleaned with no substantial differences despite the variations in water temperature. The results at the end of the wash cycle indicate that it only took 166 ppm of an Active Caustic concentrated cleaning composition (equated to 700 ppm of Chemistry 1) to achieve superior cleaning efficacy with the direct application of the chemistry regardless of temperature and while using hard water, compared to even 10,000 ppm of chemistry applied through a sump dilution in the dishmachine as is conventionally performed in dishmachines.

Example 2

[0141]Additional testing using state of the art sump diluted chemistry applied to stained ceramic tiles were conducted. FIGS. 5A-5E show a series of tea-stained tiles that underwent testing involving no chemistry (5A), Chemistry 1 (5B, 5D) or Chemistry 2 (5C, 5E). Chemistry 1 is the same caustic detergent with threshold polymer used in Example 1, and Chemistry 2 is a commercially-available caustic detergent with chelant.

[0142]The first group of tiles were washed in a machine with 5 gpg of water at a high temperature between 150-160° F. in 1 pass with no chemistry (5A).

[0143]The second group of tiles were washed with 2000 ppm of Chemistry 1 solution and washed in the machine with 5 gpg of water at a high temperature between 150-160° F. in 1 pass (5B) or 17 gpg of water at a high temperature between 150-160° F. in 1 pass (5D).

[0144]The third group of tiles were treated with 2000 ppm of Chemistry 2 Solution and washed in the machine with 5 gpg of water in 1 pass (5C) or 17 gpg of water in 1 pass all at a high temperature between 150-160° F. (5E).

[0145]The Chemistry 1 solution demonstrated a baseline performance of an inline alkaline detergent within the machine, and standard sump concentration of 2000 ppm with standard wash time. The tiles treated with Chemistry 1 with both 5 gpg or 17 gpg of water (5B, 5D), were not effectively cleaned of the tea stains despite using 2000 ppm of the solution applied using sump water at a high temperature between 150-160° F.

[0146]The tiles Chemistry 2 achieved better results with a completely clean series of tiles when washed with 5 gpg of high temperature water between 150-160° F. (5C).

[0147]This was compared to two sets of tiles sprayed with 17 gpg of water with 2000 ppm of Chemistry 1 or 2000 ppm of Chemistry 2. Though the results were not as effective as the tiles treated with Chemistry 2 with 5 gpg of water (5C), Chemistry 2 still appeared to remove more soil than Chemistry 1.

[0148]This series of tiles shows a typical sump filled cleaning composition do not adequately remove staining and soils from cleaned substrates even at high temperature between 150-160° F.

Example 3

[0149]Additional soil removal testing was conducted. FIGS. 6A-6F show three series of tea-stained tiles that were tested with Chemistry 1 and Chemistry 2 (each composition the same as described in Examples 1 and 2).

[0150]The first group of tiles were sprayed directly with 1.6 grams (about 200 ppm) of Chemistry 1 (6B) or Chemistry 2 (6A) on each tile, were left to dwell for 5 seconds in the dishmachine, and were washed for 45 seconds in the dishmachine with 5 gpg water from the sump.

[0151]The second group of tiles were sprayed directly with 1.6 grams (about 200 ppm) on each tile of Chemistry 1 (6E) and Chemistry 2 (6B), were left to dwell for 5 seconds in the dishmachine, and were washed for 45 seconds in the dishmachine with 17 gpg water from the sump.

[0152]The third group of tiles were sprayed with 0.85 grams (about 100 ppm) of Chemistry 1 (6F) and Chemistry 2 (6C) and were left to dwell for 5 seconds in the dishmachine, and were washed for 45 seconds and in the dishmachine with 17 gpg water from the sump.

[0153]The results from the tiles sprayed with a higher amount of Chemistries 1 and 2 showed a comparable efficacy of soil removal regardless of the type of water used. However, the tiles treated with the lower amount of Chemistry 1 and 2 showed slightly less soil removal.

[0154]The results indicate that the higher amount of chemistry was more effective to clean tea soil stains regardless of the type of water used in the dishmachine. However the results were a convincing comparison to prior examples demonstrating the state of the art where 10,000 ppm chemistry was required to remove the stains from the times and in these results 200 ppm or less were required.

Example 4

[0155]FIGS. 7A-7E show a series of tea-stained tiles washed with 17 gpg of water at a high temperature between 150-160° F. using 0.85 grams of Chemistry 1 directly sprayed onto the tiles for various wash cycle times in the dishmachine.

[0156]Each series of tiles was sprayed with 0.85 grams of Chemistry 1 and washed for various cycle times including 45 seconds (7A), 30 seconds (7B), 15 seconds (7C), 5 seconds (7D) or 1 second (7E) of wash time. Each tile dwelled within the wash cycle after it was directly sprayed with chemistry for 5 seconds followed by a wash with 17 gpg sump water, and then rinsed for 15 seconds. The results depicted in FIGS. 7A-7E show that the tea soil removal was effective regardless of the wash cycle time-demonstrating a critical improvement of the methods described herein in that the direct application of the chemistry can reduce the cycle time for the subsequent wash cycle. These results showed that the application of Chemistry 1 was effective in soil removal independent of water hardness and wash cycle time as each series of tiles were equally clean.

[0157]FIGS. 8A-8E show a similar series of tea-stained tiles that were subjected to the same steps as the tiles in FIG. 7, with water at a low temperature between 110-120° F. also using 17 gpg water. Once again, the tea soil removal with only 0.85 grams of Chemistry 1 directly applied to the tiles proved to be effective independent of water temperature, water hardness, and wash cycle time.

Example 5

[0158]A series of tiles were stained with various soils. Each tile's stain was numbered according to the food used to stain the tile: 1) chocolate pudding, 2) fat mix, 3) gravy, 4) black olive oil, 5) Sheppard's pie and 6) spaghetti bolognese sauce/cheese. The tiles were then separated into 5 groups.

[0159]Each of the series of tiles were washed in a dishmachine with 17 gpg water from the sump at a high temperature between 150-160° F., underwent 3 wash cycles, and 3 of the groups of tiles were sprayed directly with 1.6 grams of Chemistry 1, 2 or 3, on each tile within the dishmachine. The sprayed tiles were left to dwell for 5 seconds, and this was followed by a 45 second wash.

[0160]FIG. 9A depicts a group of tiles stained with each food soil as a control group for reference of soil stains before any washing cycles in the dishmachine.

[0161]FIG. 9B depicts a group of tiles that were washed with no chemistry sprayed during the wash cycles. The results indicate little to no soil removal.

[0162]FIG. 9C depicts a group of food stained tiles that were washed and sprayed directly with 1.6 grams of Chemistry 3, a commercially-available low alkalinity and enzyme containing detergent, during the wash cycle. The results indicated that for tiles 1-4, there was a substantial amount of soil removal. However, this appeared to be less effective for tiles 5 and 6, stained with Sheppard's pie and spaghetti bolognese sauce.

[0163]FIG. 9D depicts the group of tiles that were washed and sprayed with 1.6 grams of Chemistry 1, showing a higher efficacy rate of soil removal and cleaner tiles than those sprayed with Chemistry 3, suggesting that Chemistry 1 appears to be more effective than Chemistry 3.

[0164]FIG. 9E demonstrates another group of tile stained with food that were washed and sprayed with 1.6 grams of Chemistry 2 before the wash cycle. Overall, these tiles had better results and higher efficacy of food soil removal than Chemistry 1 and Chemistry 3.

[0165]Overall, the data suggests that the tiles treated with Chemistry 2 appeared to be the most effective for each of the food stains compared to Chemistry 1, Chemistry 3, the control and the no chemistry treated tiles. This data also demonstrates the impact on soil removal with the direct contact using an additional detergent composition.

Example 6

[0166]A series of tiles stained with tea were further evaluated. Each of the series of tiles were placed in the dishmachine and were treated with 17 gpg water in the sump at high temperature between 150-160° F. with four different types of concentrated cleaning or rinsing compositions including Chemistry 1, Chemistry 2, Chemistry 3, and Chemistry 4. Chemistries 1, 2, and 3 are the same commercially-available detergents described in prior Examples. Chemistry 4 is a commercially-available low caustic alkalinity detergent that does not require the use of personal protective equipment (PPE) (or lessened PPE requirements).

[0167]FIGS. 10A-10H show two groups of four series of tiles. In the top grouping, Chemistry 1 (10A), Chemistry 2 (10B), Chemistry 3 (10C) and Chemistry 4 (10D) were delivered as 2000 ppm chemistry from the sump (diluted into the sump), and in the bottom grouping, Chemistry 1 (10E), Chemistry 2 (10F), Chemistry 3 (10G) and Chemistry 4 (10H) were directly sprayed in the amount of 0.85 g (100 ppm) onto each tile.

[0168]After the Chemistry was applied in both groups, each tile was left for 5 seconds to dwell (which is referred to as the spray contact time on the treated tile), followed by a 45 second wash cycle. As displayed by the results, the direct spray (bottom row) was more effective at a higher pH, particularly for Chemistry 1 and 2. The results beneficially show that regardless of the Chemistry used, the sump solution is not as effective as directly spraying the tiles for soil removal which beneficially requires a lower total concentration of the chemistry.

[0169]Additionally, the results indicate that the increased ionic strength supported the increased performance of each concentrated cleaning or rinsing composition tested. The higher pH used when each chemistry was sprayed directly onto the tile, the more clean the tiles were, especially with Chemistry 2 and the Chemistry 1. However, those tiles washed with chemistry in the sump did not show the same level of effectiveness regardless of pH.

Example 7

[0170]FIGS. 11A-11D show a series of tiles stained with tea and tested with two different competitive controls. The tiles were subjected to the procedures described with respect to FIG. 10. The top group of groups of tiles were tested with either 2000 ppm of Competitive Control 1 (11A) or Competitive Control 2 (11B) where the chemistry was delivered through a sump solution.

[0171]The bottom group of tiles had 0.85 grams/time×4 which is approximately 64 ppm added into the sump of the machine of Competitive Control 1 (11C) or Competitive Control 2 (11D) sprayed directly on each tile.

[0172]The results were consistent in achieving increased performance and effectiveness of soil removal with the use of direct application of the cleaning compositions sprayed onto the tiles. The results further indicated that the Competitive Controls 1 and 2 having a pH above 12 may further support a potential mechanism of action involving ionic strength and/or pH which can vary dependent upon the type of soils to be removed and cleaned.

Example 8

[0173]A series of tiles shown in FIGS. 12A-12G were stained with tea. Each series of tiles were tested with different concentrations of Caustic (NaOH) solutions or Ash (Sodium Carbonate) Solutions at varying pH levels in order to compare which solution at different pH levels was most effective for soil removal.

[0174]5 of the series of tiles were sprayed with 0.1-5% of Caustic Solution (12A-12E). Each tile was directly sprayed with 0.85 g of Caustic Solution and was then washed with 17 gpg water in the sump at high temperature between 150-160° F. After the Caustic Solution was directly sprayed on each tile, the tiles were left to dwell for five seconds and followed by 45 second wash cycle.

[0175]The remaining 2 series of tiles were sprayed with 5% or 10% of Ash Solution (12F, 12G) also at varying pH levels undergoing the same procedure in the dishmachine as outlined above.

[0176]The results show that the Caustic Solution with the highest pH levels, particularly 13.0, yielded the best soil removal as opposed to the Caustic Solutions with lower pH ranges or the Ash Solution.

Example 9

[0177]A series of tiles that was tested with Chemistry 1 applied directly to the tiles in the dishmachine were evaluated as shown in FIGS. 13A-13D. The tiles before washing are shown in FIG. 13A. Each series of tiles was also washed with either no food soil in the sump (13B), 2000 ppm of Food Soil in the sump (13C) and 8125 ppm Food Soil in the Sump (13D). The tiles were washed with 17 gpg of Sump water at a high temperature.

[0178]After the tiles were sprayed with Chemistry 1, the tiles were left to dwell for 5 seconds, the tiles were then washed for 45 seconds and rinsed for 15 seconds.

[0179]Independent of the food soil concentration in the sump, the tea soil removal still proved effective when each tile was directly sprayed with Chemistry 1.

Example 10

[0180]FIGS. 14A-14H show the results of multiple tea-stained plates being subjected to low temperature between 110-120° F., 17 gpg water in the sump with hot point food soil in the sump, where each plate underwent a 10 second flush, a five second pause, a 5 second direct application spray of Chemistry 1, and 35 second wash cycle.

[0181]The first plate shows a tea-stained control (14A). The second plate was washed with no food soil in the sump (14B), and the remaining plates multiple other tea-stained plates washed with various concentrations of food soil (14C-14H). The purpose of this was to test whether the food soil helped along with the application or adherence of Chemistry 1 to the plates and therefore the subsequent soil removal.

[0182]The results indicate that the hot point food soil in the sump aids surface contact of the applied chemistry and is therefore more effective than no food soil used to clean the tiles.

Example 11

[0183]FIGS. 15A-15C depict three series of tiles stained with four different foods. Each tile was colored according to the type of food, orange corresponded to Potato Starch on melamine, brown corresponded to Baked Cheese on melamine, blue corresponded to Cream Chicken Soup/Whole Milk on ceramic, and a light brown corresponded to Tea on ceramic.

[0184]Each series of tiles were washed with 17 gpg water in the sump at a high temperature between 150-160° F. treated with Chemistry 3 as described below, were left to dwell for 5 seconds and then followed by a 45 second wash cycle.

[0185]The first of the series of tiles were tested with Chemistry 3 at 2000 ppm within the sump and was followed by 3 wash cycles. This showed only partial soil removal from each of the tiles as displayed in FIG. 15A.

[0186]The second series of tiles were sprayed directly with 1.6 grams on each tile for a total of 240 ppm to the sump of Chemistry 3 and was followed by 1 wash cycle. This also showed only partial soil removal from each of the tiles as displayed in FIG. 15B.

[0187]The third series of tiles were sprayed directly with 1.6 grams on each tile for a total of 240 ppm to the sump for each run of Chemistry 3 and was followed by 3 wash cycles (providing 240 ppm for first 1 wash cycle, cumulatively 480 ppm for 2 wash cycles, and 720 ppm for 3 wash cycles). This also showed only partial soil removal from each of the tiles as displayed in FIG. 15C.

[0188]Overall, the third series of tiles sprayed directly with 1.6 grams of Chemistry 3 and washed 3 times (720 ppm) were the most effective for soil removal regardless of the type of food stain.

[0189]Subsequent quantification of the extend of soil removal was conducted on the tiles using A5 Spectrophotometer/Colorimeter (HunterLab colorimeters used to measure the reflectance of the tiles) to quantify a percentage of soil removal (% clean). The L Value for each tile was recorded before testing. The test results are compared directly using the change in the L value by calculating the % of soil removal through the formula: ΔL=L_final−L_initial. % of Soil Removal=ΔL/(L_best−L_inital)*100%. L_best=L reading of a theoretically perfect clean tile. No measurable differences could be detected for the orange (Potato Starch on melamine) and brown (Baked Cheese on melamine). The % clean for the blue (Cream Chicken Soup/Whole Milk on ceramic) and light brown (Tea on ceramic) are summarized in Table 1.

[0190]The quantified data further shows that the third series of tiles sprayed directly with 1.6 grams of Chemistry 3 and washed 3 times (720 ppm) were the most effective for soil removal regardless of the type of food stain.

Example 12

[0191]FIGS. 16A-16C show a series of tea tiles contacted with an active caustic solution. As shown in FIG. 16A(1), the first series were placed in a dishmachine and washed with 17 gpg water at a high temperature 158° F. The left series of tiles were treated with 6000 ppm of Chemistry 1 delivered to the tiles via a sump solution. This Chemistry equated to about 1425 ppm of active caustic. The right series of tiles in FIG. 16A(2) were contacted using the same process with 7000 ppm of Chemistry 1, which is about 1675 ppm of active caustic. The results following the washing cycle show that the tiles treated with a higher amount of active caustic cleaned the tea stains better as would be expected using the state of the art dishwashing method where soil removal is enhanced with an increased concentration of chemistry applied through the sump of the dishmachine.

[0192]FIG. 16B(1-6) shows 6 series of tea-stained tiles that underwent a similar process to those in FIG. 16A. The first half of tiles were contacted with 500 ppm of active caustic solution and the second half of the tiles were contacted with 2000 ppm of active caustic solution during the wash cycle. Two sets of tiles in each group underwent this treatment with 0 gpg sump water, two were washed with 5 gpg sump water and the last two were washed with 17 gpg sump water. The water used was once again at the same high temperature 158° F. The results following the wash cycle indicated that those tiles treated with 2000 active caustic cleaned the tea stains more effectively than those treated with 500 ppm active caustic regardless of the amount of water used as would be expected using the state of the art dishwashing method where soil removal is enhanced with an increased concentration of chemistry applied through the sump of the dishmachine.

[0193]FIG. 16C demonstrates two series of tiles treated utilizing the same process as FIG. 16A and FIG. 16B at a lower temperature of 100° F. The first series of tiles were treated with 2000 ppm of active caustic in the sump water, and were washed with 17 gpg water at a low temperature of 125° F. The second series of tiles were washed with the same concentration of active caustic and water, but at a lower temperature of 100° F. Following the wash cycle, the results indicate that the tiles washed at 125° F. were cleaner than those washed at 100° F., using the same concentration and amount of water.

[0194]The results suggest that the higher concentration of active caustic, the better results for soil removal under both high and low temperatures in the dishmachine. This is a state of the art comparison and the results are predictive.

[0195]As a comparison to the methods described herein, next a series of tea-stained tiles were washed in a dishmachine using three different concentrations of active caustic solutions at different pH levels employing the direct contact of the chemistry instead of dilution within the dishmachine sump. Each set of the tea-stained tiles were washed at a high temperature between 150-160° F. with 5 gpg water from the sump and were directly sprayed with 56 grams of caustic per cycle.

[0196]FIG. 17A shows a series of tiles that were directly sprayed with 1% of Caustic solution with a concentration pH of 12.9 providing 20 ppm of active caustic. The end of the wash cycle as outlined above demonstrates that the tiles were extremely clean with dosing only 56 grams of chemistry.

[0197]Based on the cleaning efficacy achieved in the first application of the 1% caustic solution, this chemistry concentration was lowered to assess for efficacy at a lower concentration with the direct application of the chemistry. FIG. 17B shows a series of tiles that were washed with the lower concentration, a 0.5% of Caustic Solution with concentration pH of 12.7 providing 10 ppm of active caustic solution directly applied to wash the tiles. The tiles showed similar effectiveness of removing the tea stains to those in FIG. 17A.

[0198]A still further reduced concentration of caustic solution was evaluated based on the cleaning efficacy achieved in the applications of the 1% caustic solution and 0.5% caustic solutions. FIG. 17C demonstrates the same procedure conducted on a series of tiles with 0.25% of Caustic solution at a pH of 12.5 providing only 5 ppm of active caustic directly applied to the tiles. These tiles were the least clean of the three groups, suggesting a threshold for a caustic only solution employing the direct contact cleaning method should be greater than 5 ppm, such as at least about 10 ppm of Caustic solution to achieve effective cleaning results for the tea-stained tiles.

Example 13

[0199]FIGS. 18A-18E show a series of tea tiles, representing the most challenging soil to remove, contacted with Chemistry 1. As shown in FIG. 18A, the tiles were individually arranged in a rack for a dishmachine using 17 gpg water at a low temperature 100° F. This example using 17 gpg water and low temperature provides challenging water conditions and there is beneficially performance benefit of the methods described herein while using very little actives in comparison to the actives used in a sump.

[0200]FIG. 18B shows the series of tiles treated with 20% Chemistry 1 solution (concentrate pH 13.1) and providing ˜95 ppm active caustic to the tiles. FIG. 18C shows the series of tiles treated with 21% Chemistry 1 solution (concentrate pH 13) and providing ˜48 ppm active caustic to the tiles. FIG. 18D shows the series of tiles treated with 5% Chemistry 1 solution (concentrate pH 12.9) and providing ˜24 ppm active caustic to the tiles. FIG. 18E shows the series of tiles treated with 2.5% Chemistry 1 solution (concentrate pH 12.8) and providing ˜12 ppm active caustic to the tiles.

[0201]The results show more significant residue remaining in FIG. 18D and FIG. 18E (providing about 24 ppm and 12 ppm, respectively active caustic). FIG. 18C shows that only 50 ppm active caustic was required when using the methods of direct application of the chemistry to the tiles. These results a are significant in they are tested under most challenging soil conditions and using 17 gpg hard water and low temperature, overall challenging the performance of any cleaning composition. Moreover, the results are approximately equivalent to sump dosing of about 7000 ppm of Chemistry 1 (approximately 1650 ppm active caustic) using the state of the art dishwashing methods.

Example 14

[0202]FIGS. 19A-19H show a series of tea tiles, representing the most challenging soil to remove, contacted with Chemistry 5, a commercially available liquid low alkalinity all purpose detergent. The testing was done using a warewash machine using 17 gpg water and a standard cycle timing with different spray durations as follows; Prewash 5 seconds; Pause 5 seconds; Direct Chemical Spray (Varied as reported); Pause 10 seconds; Wash 15 seconds; Rinse 10 seconds; Total Wash Cycle approximately 48-55 seconds.

[0203]As shown in the figures the Chemistry 5 was evaluated at 10%, 20% and 30% solutions applied for varying amounts of time (2-10 seconds) to dose a total amount in grams of the chemistry direct to the tiles. The % clean (percentage of soil removal) as calculated using a flatbed scanner and ImageJ to analyze soil removal is summarized in Table 2 along with the various measures of the chemistry directly sprayed on the tile.

[0204]The results reported in Table 2 (and subsequent tables reporting similar data) provide a comparison to the ppm active chemistry in a direct spray solution, compared to in the same warewashing cycle how much the same chemistry is in the dish machine sump water once it hits steady state (ppm total product and active ppm). In Table 2 the first 10% solution applied for 10 seconds sprays a solution of 18,500 ppm chemistry directly on the ware. The same chemistry once it runs into the dish machine sump then has a sump concentration of 216 ppm active chemistry. As detergents are typically dosed directly into the dish machine sump, the last two columns shows a comparison on the amount of chemistry used in direct spray compared to traditional chemistry.

[0205]The results show that the use of the 10% solution (most dilute) and delivering the lowest ppm of both total product and active chemistry to the tiles achieved greatest % clean with the 10 second contact time (direct spray onto tiles for longest period therefore delivering greatest amount of the Chemistry 5). Both the 20% and 30% solutions at 5 and 10 second contact time achieved beneficial cleaning results.

[0206]A visual comparison to delivery of the same Chemistry 5 via the sump dilution and spraying onto tiles is shown in FIG. 20A-20B where the traditional cycle delivered 900 ppm and 1300 ppm of total chemistry during the wash cycle demonstrating a clear and quantifiable benefit to the direct spray methods and described according to the various embodiments of the disclosure.

Example 15

[0207]FIGS. 21A-21H show a series of tea tiles, representing the most challenging soil to remove, contacted with Chemistry 6, a commercially available liquid high alkalinity heavy duty detergent. The testing was done using the warewash machine and parameters as described in Example 14. As shown in the figures the Chemistry 6 was evaluated at 10%, 20% and 30% solutions applied for varying amounts of time (2-10 seconds) to dose a total amount in grams of the chemistry direct to the tiles. The % clean (percentage of soil removal) as calculated using an A5 Spectrophotometer/Colorimeter (HunterLab colorimeters used to measure the reflectance of the tiles) as described in Example 11 is summarized in Table 3 along with the various measures of the chemistry directly sprayed on the tile.

[0208]The results again show a clear benefit to the direct spray of the chemistry with all dilutions, including complete removal with the most dilute 10% solution at 3 seconds contacting time.

[0209]A visual comparison to delivery of the same Chemistry 5 via the sump dilution and spraying onto tiles is shown in FIG. 22A-22B where the traditional cycle delivered 500 ppm and 1000 ppm of total chemistry during the wash cycle demonstrating a clear and quantifiable benefit to the direct spray methods and described according to the various embodiments of the disclosure.

Example 16

[0210]FIGS. 23A-21E show a series of tea tiles contacted with Chemistry 6. The testing was done using the warewash machine and parameters as described in Example 14. The Chemistry 6 was evaluated at 5% solutions applied for varying amounts of time (3-10 seconds). The % clean (percentage of soil removal) as calculated using an A5 Spectrophotometer/Colorimeter (HunterLab colorimeters used to measure the reflectance of the tiles) as described in Example 11 is summarized in Table 4 along with the various measures of the chemistry directly sprayed on the tile.

[0211]The results again show a clear benefit to the direct spray of the chemistry at lower % dilution compared to the prior example, including complete removal with the most dilute 5% solution at 5, 8 and 10 seconds contacting time.

Example 17

[0212]FIGS. 24A-24E show a series of tea tiles contacted with Chemistry 7, a commercially available solid heavy duty alkalinity cleaning composition. The testing was done using the warewash machine and parameters as described in Example 14. The Chemistry 7 was evaluated at 5% solutions applied for varying amounts of time (2-8 seconds). The % clean (percentage of soil removal) as calculated using an A5 Spectrophotometer/Colorimeter (HunterLab colorimeters used to measure the reflectance of the tiles) as described in Example 11 is summarized in Table 5 along with the various measures of the chemistry directly sprayed on the tile as a use solution from the solid composition.

[0213]The results again show a clear benefit to the direct spray of the chemistry at lower % dilution for an additional chemistry evaluated, with greatest effect seen with the 3 second or longer contacting time.

[0214]Based on these results a more dilute application of the Chemistry 7 was evaluated at 2% solution under the same parameters with the results shown in FIGS. 25A-25E and Table 6.

[0215]The results again show a clear benefit to the direct spray of the chemistry at lower % dilution for an additional chemistry evaluated, with greatest effect seen with the 5 second or longer contacting time.

[0216]Based on these results a more dilute application of the Chemistry 7 was evaluated at 1% solution under the same parameters with the results shown in FIGS. 26A-26D and Table 7.

[0217]The results show that the most efficacious removal using Chemistry 7 is achieved at the 2% solution and greater. However, even at the 1% solution under the 8-10 second time >50% of the soil was removed showing a clear benefit to the direct spray of the chemistry.

Example 18

[0218]Additional testing to evaluate the contact time of the chemistry on treated substrates. The testing was done using a warewash machine using 17 gpg water and a standard cycle timing with different spray durations as follows; Prewash 5 seconds; Pause 5 seconds or 0 seconds; Direct Chemical Spray 3 seconds; Pause (Varied as reported); Wash 15 seconds; Rinse 10 seconds.

[0219]The evaluated methods included a Prewash pause of 5 seconds. This pause provides time for the water from the prewash step to drain off the tiles, resulting in the direct chemistry spray being more concentrated as it does not immediately run off with the prewash water.

[0220]FIGS. 27A-27E show a series of tea tiles contacted with Chemistry 6 that included a 5 second pause after the prewash of the times and then additional pause after the direct spray of the chemistry, whereas FIGS. 28A-28E did not have the 5 second pause after the prewash, as shown in the figures are reported in Table 8.

[0221]The data shows that the chemistry benefits from additional contact time of at least 5 seconds for enhanced soil removal efficacy of the treated surfaces as a result of more concentrated chemistry applied with the disclosed methods.

[0222]It is to be understood that while the invention has been described in conjunction with the detailed description thereof, the foregoing description is intended to illustrate, and not limit the scope of the invention, which is defined by the scope of the appended claims. Other embodiments, advantages, and modifications are within the scope of the following claims. Any reference to accompanying drawings which form a part hereof, are shown, by way of illustration only. It is understood that other embodiments may be utilized, and structural changes may be made without departing from the scope of the present disclosure.

[0223]The features disclosed in the foregoing description, or the following claims, or the accompanying drawings, expressed in their specific forms or in terms of a means for performing the disclosed function, or a method or process for attaining the disclosed result, as appropriate, may, separately, or in any combination of such features, be utilized for realizing the invention in diverse forms thereof.